Cell determination method and apparatus

Abstract

This application provides a cell determination method and apparatus to reduce the overhead of configuration information and improve communication efficiency. According to this method, a network can group all cells, and cells that can serve the same object are considered a cell set, and different objects can correspond to different cell sets. In this way, for a target object, the configuration information can indicate only the service time during which at least two cells in a first cell set of all cells serve the target object. This can reduce the overhead of configuration information and improve communication efficiency.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of communications, and in particular, to a cell determination method and apparatus.

Background Art

[0002] Non-terrestrial network (NTN) communication uses a high-altitude platform station such as a satellite for networking and can provide services such as data transmission and voice communication for user equipment (UE). The data processing capacity and transmission power of NTN communication are usually limited by the manufacturing cost and launch cost of the satellite. To break this limitation, satellite operators may deploy a large low-Earth orbit constellation to compensate for the limitation of the communication capacity of a single satellite, that is, increase the number of satellites like low-orbit satellites. Multiple satellites can simultaneously provide communication services within a certain period, perform multi-satellite cooperative transmission, and improve the overall signal processing capacity and communication throughput of NTN communication.

[0003] To ensure that the UE can discover and access the cells of these satellites that can simultaneously provide communication services, the network can configure the service start time and service end time of the cells of all satellites in the non-stationary constellation for the UE. Based on the service start time and service end time, the UE can determine the cells that are providing communication services within the time when communication services need to be obtained, perform measurements on these cells, and access these cells to obtain communication services. However, this configuration method has high overhead and low communication efficiency.

Summary of the Invention

[0004] Embodiments of this application provide a cell determination method and apparatus to reduce the overhead of configuration information and improve communication efficiency. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] To achieve the above-mentioned objectives, this application employs the following technical solutions.

[0006] According to a first aspect, a cell determination method is provided. This method includes a terminal acquiring configuration information, which includes configuration information for a first cell set, the configuration information for the first cell set includes service times for at least two cells in the first cell set that provide services to a target object, and the first cell set is a set of cells that provide services to a target object. In this way, the terminal determines a first cell to be measured in the first cell set based on the configuration information for the first cell set.

[0007] From the first embodiment of the method, it can be seen that the network can group all cells, and cells that can serve the same object are considered a cell set, and different objects may correspond to different cell sets. In this way, for a target object, the configuration information can indicate only the service time during which at least two cells in the first cell set across all cells serve the target object. This reduces the overhead of configuration information and improves communication efficiency.

[0008] In a possible design solution, the service time during which at least two cells in a first cell set provide services to a target object includes at least one of the service start times or service end times of at least two cells in the first cell set. For cells that can provide services to the same target object, for example, cells in the first cell set, these cells can typically provide services to the target object over time. In this case, the cells that can provide services to the target object at any given time can also be determined based solely on the service start or end times of these cells. Thus, the configuration information can indicate only the service start or end times during which at least two cells in the first cell set provide services to a target object, thereby further reducing the overhead of the configuration information and further improving communication efficiency.

[0009] Optionally, at least two cells in the first cell set include a first and a second cell with adjacent end-of-service times, the first time at which the terminal begins measurement is after the end-of-service time of the first cell, the first time is before the end-of-service time of the second cell, and the first cell under measurement includes the second cell. To ensure service continuity, it may be understood that the service times of the first cell and the second cell usually overlap. For example, when the first cell stops providing service, the second cell starts providing service. In this case, if the first time is between the end-of-service time of the first cell and the end-of-service time of the second cell, the second cell is providing service. Therefore, the terminal may perform measurements on the second cell that is providing service, and does not need to perform measurements on the first cell that has stopped providing service, thereby avoiding measurement redundancy and reducing the terminal's power consumption.

[0010] Furthermore, at least two cells within the first cell set further include a third cell whose end-of-service time is adjacent to the end-of-service time of the second cell, and the end-of-service time of the third cell is after the end-of-service time of the second cell, and the first measured cells further include the third cell. It can be understood that the service times of the second cell and the third cell usually overlap. For example, before the second cell stops providing service, the third cell has started providing service to ensure service continuity. In this case, the third cell may have started providing service at the first time. Therefore, the terminal needs to perform measurements on the third cell that may be providing service to ensure that the terminal can discover more cells that are providing service.

[0011] Optionally, at least two cells in the first cell set include a first cell and a second cell with adjacent service start times, the first time at which the terminal begins measurement is after the service start time of the first cell, the first time is before the service start time of the second cell, and the first cell to be measured includes the first cell. To ensure service continuity, it may be understood that the service times of the first cell and the second cell usually overlap. For example, when the second cell begins providing service, the first cell has not stopped providing service. In this case, if the first time is between the service start time of the first cell and the service start time of the second cell, the first cell is providing service. Therefore, the terminal may perform measurements on the first cell that is providing service, and does not need to perform measurements on the second cell that has not started providing service, thereby avoiding measurement redundancy and reducing the terminal's power consumption.

[0012] Furthermore, at least two cells within the first cell set further include a third cell whose service start time is adjacent to the service start time of the first cell, and whose service start time is before the service start time of the first cell, and the first measured cell further includes the third cell. It can be understood that the service times of the first cell and the service times of the third cell usually overlap. For example, when the first cell begins providing service, the third cell has not stopped providing service in order to ensure service continuity. In this case, the third cell may not have stopped providing service at the first time. Therefore, the terminal needs to perform measurements on the third cell that may be providing service in order to ensure that the terminal can discover more cells that are providing service.

[0013] In a possible design solution, the first cell set is a set of cells that provide services to the target object over time, specifically from different satellites, and may be a set of cells that provide services to the target object over time, ensuring that the target object can continuously receive services and avoid service interruptions.

[0014] In a possible design solution, the configuration information further includes configuration information for a second cell set, the configuration information for the second cell set includes service times provided by at least two cells in the second cell set, and the at least two cells in the second cell set partially overlap with at least two cells in the first cell set. The method according to the first embodiment may further include: The terminal determines a second cell to be measured in the second cell set based on the configuration information for the second cell set.

[0015] Since at least two cells in the second cell set partially overlap with at least two cells in the first cell set, it can be seen that at least two cells in the second cell set can also serve the target object. Therefore, the configuration information can further indicate the service time of at least two cells in the first cell set, and as a result, the terminal can perform measurements on the second set of measured cells that can serve the target object, ensuring that the terminal can discover more cells that are being served.

[0016] Optionally, the service times of at least two cells in the second cell set include at least one of the service start times or service end times of at least two cells in the second cell set. As with the first cell set, it can be seen that the cells that can provide service at any given time may be determined solely on the service start or end times of at least two cells in the second cell set. Therefore, the configuration information may alternatively indicate only the service start or end times of at least two cells in the second cell set that provide service, thereby further reducing the overhead of the configuration information and further improving communication efficiency.

[0017] Furthermore, at least two cells in the second cell set include a fourth and a fifth cell whose end-of-service times are adjacent, the first time at which the terminal begins measurement is after the end-of-service time of the fourth cell, and the first time is before the end-of-service time of the fifth cell, and the second cell to be measured includes the fifth cell. To ensure service continuity, it can be understood that the service times of the fourth cell and the fifth cell usually overlap. For example, when the fourth cell stops providing service, the fifth cell starts providing service. In this case, if the first time is between the end-of-service time of the fourth cell and the end-of-service time of the fifth cell, the fifth cell is providing service. Therefore, the terminal may perform measurements on the fifth cell that is providing service, and does not need to perform measurements on the fourth cell that has stopped providing service, thereby avoiding measurement redundancy and reducing the terminal's power consumption.

[0018] Furthermore, at least two cells in the second set of cells further include a sixth cell whose end-of-service time is adjacent to the end-of-service time of the fifth cell, and the end-of-service time of the sixth cell is after the end-of-service time of the fifth cell, and the second set of cells to be measured further includes the sixth cell. It can be understood that the service times of the fifth cell and the sixth cell usually overlap. For example, the sixth cell may have started providing service to ensure service continuity before the fifth cell ceases providing service. In this case, the sixth cell may have started providing service at the first time. Therefore, the terminal needs to perform measurements on the sixth cell that may be providing service to ensure that the terminal can discover more cells that are providing service.

[0019] Furthermore, at least two cells in the second cell set include a fourth and a fifth cell whose service start times are adjacent, the first time at which the terminal begins measurement is after the service start time of the fourth cell, and the first time is before the service start time of the fifth cell, and the second cell to be measured includes the fourth cell. To ensure service continuity, it can be understood that the service times of the fourth cell and the fifth cell usually overlap. For example, when the fifth cell begins providing service, the fourth cell has not stopped providing service. In this case, if the first time is between the service start time of the fourth cell and the service start time of the fifth cell, the fourth cell is providing service. Therefore, the terminal may perform measurements on the fourth cell which is providing service, and does not need to perform measurements on the fifth cell which has not started providing service, thereby avoiding measurement redundancy and reducing the terminal's power consumption.

[0020] Furthermore, at least two cells in the second cell set further include a sixth cell whose service start time is adjacent to the service start time of the fourth cell, and whose service start time is before the service start time of the fourth cell, and the second measured cell further includes the sixth cell. It can be understood that the service times of the fourth cell and the sixth cell usually overlap. For example, when the fourth cell begins providing service, the sixth cell has not stopped providing service in order to ensure service continuity. In this case, the sixth cell may not have stopped providing service at the first time. Therefore, the terminal needs to perform measurements on the sixth cell that may be providing service in order to ensure that the terminal can discover more cells that are providing service.

[0021] In a possible design solution, the service times of at least two cells are either Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) or at least two cells are time offsets relative to the base UTC. Since at least two cells serve the target object in a time series, it can be understood that the service time of a later-serving cell may be determined by adding a time offset to the base UTC. Therefore, the configuration information may indicate only the base UTC and one time offset to further reduce the overhead of the configuration information.

[0022] In possible design solutions, the target object is one of the following: a target area, a target ground station, a target base station, or a target terminal, so as to be applicable to different scenarios.

[0023] According to a second aspect, a cell determination method is provided. This method includes a network device acquiring and transmitting configuration information. The configuration information includes configuration information for a first cell set. The configuration information for the first cell set includes service times in which at least two cells in the first cell set provide services to a target object. The first cell set is a set of cells that provide services to a target object, and the configuration information for the first cell set is used by a terminal to determine the cell to be measured in the first cell set.

[0024] In a possible design solution, the service time during which at least two cells in the first cell set serve the target object includes at least one of the service start times of the at least two cells in the first cell set or the service end times of the at least two cells in the first cell set.

[0025] In a possible design solution, the first set of cells is a set of cells that serve the target object in a time series.

[0026] In a possible design solution, the first cell set is from different satellites and is a set of cells that provide services to a target object in a time series.

[0027] In a possible design solution, the configuration information further includes the configuration information of the second cell set. The configuration information of the second cell set includes the service times of at least two cells in the second cell set. At least two cells in the second cell set partially overlap with at least two cells in the first cell set, and the configuration information of the second cell set is used by the terminal to determine the measurement target cells in the second cell set.

[0028] Optionally, the service times of at least two cells in the second cell set include at least one of the service start times of at least two cells in the second cell set or the service end times of at least two cells in the second cell set.

[0029] In a possible design solution, the service times of at least two cells are Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), or the service times of at least two cells are time offsets relative to a reference UTC.

[0030] In a possible design solution, the target object is any one of a target area, a target terrestrial station, a target base station, or a target terminal.

[0031] In addition, for the technical effects of the cell determination method according to the second aspect, refer to the technical effects of the cell determination method according to the first aspect. Details are not described again in this specification.

[0032] According to a third aspect, a cell determination method is provided. This method includes a network device acquiring and transmitting configuration information. The configuration information includes configuration information for a first cell set. The configuration information for the first cell set includes service times in which at least two cells in the first cell set provide services to a target object. The first cell set is a set of cells that provide services to a target object, and the configuration information for the first cell set is used by a terminal to determine a cell to be measured in the first cell set. In this way, the terminal determines a first cell to be measured in the first cell set based on the configuration information for the first cell set.

[0033] In a possible design solution, the service time during which at least two cells in the first cell set serve the target object includes at least one of the service start times of the at least two cells in the first cell set or the service end times of the at least two cells in the first cell set.

[0034] Optionally, at least two cells in the first cell set include a first cell and a second cell with adjacent end-of-service times, the first time at which the terminal begins measurement is after the end-of-service time of the first cell, the first time is before the end-of-service time of the second cell, and the first cell to be measured includes the second cell.

[0035] Furthermore, at least two cells in the first cell set further include a third cell whose end-of-service time is adjacent to the end-of-service time of the second cell, the end-of-service time of the third cell being after the end-of-service time of the second cell, and the first measured cell further includes the third cell.

[0036] Optionally, at least two cells in the first cell set include a first cell and a second cell with adjacent service start times, the first time at which the terminal begins measurement is after the service start time of the first cell, the first time is before the service start time of the second cell, and the first cell to be measured includes the first cell.

[0037] Furthermore, at least two cells within the first cell set further include a third cell whose service start time is adjacent to the service start time of the first cell, the service start time of the third cell being earlier than the service start time of the first cell, and the first cell under measurement further includes the third cell.

[0038] In a possible design solution, the first cell set is a set of cells that serve a target object over time, specifically, a set of cells from different satellites that serve a target object over time.

[0039] In a possible design solution, the configuration information further includes configuration information for a second cell set, the configuration information for the second cell set includes the service times of at least two cells in the second cell set, and the at least two cells in the second cell set partially overlap with at least two cells in the first cell set. A method according to a third embodiment may further include: The terminal determines a second cell to be measured in the second cell set based on the configuration information for the second cell set.

[0040] Optionally, the service time of at least two cells in the second set of cells includes at least one of the service start times of at least two cells in the second set of cells, or the service end times of at least two cells in the second set of cells.

[0041] Furthermore, at least two cells in the second cell set include a fourth and a fifth cell whose end-of-service times are adjacent, the first time at which the terminal begins measurement is after the end-of-service time of the fourth cell, and the first time is before the end-of-service time of the fifth cell, and the second cell under measurement includes the fifth cell.

[0042] Furthermore, at least two cells in the second set of cells further include a sixth cell whose end-of-service time is adjacent to the end-of-service time of the fifth cell, and the end-of-service time of the sixth cell is after the end-of-service time of the fifth cell, and the second set of cells to be measured further includes the sixth cell.

[0043] Furthermore, at least two cells in the second cell set include a fourth and a fifth cell whose service start times are adjacent, the first time at which the terminal begins measurement is after the service start time of the fourth cell, and the first time is before the service start time of the fifth cell, and the second cell under measurement includes the fourth cell.

[0044] Furthermore, at least two cells in the second set of cells further include a sixth cell whose service start time is adjacent to the service start time of the fourth cell, and the service start time of the sixth cell is before the service start time of the fourth cell, and the second set of cells to be measured further includes the sixth cell.

[0045] In a possible design solution, the service times of at least two cells are either Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) or at least two cells have a time offset relative to base UTC.

[0046] In a possible design solution, the target object is one of the following: a target area, a target ground station, a target base station, or a target terminal.

[0047] According to a fourth aspect, a communication device is provided. The communication device includes modules configured to perform the method according to the first aspect, for example, a transceiver module and a processing module. For example, the transceiver module is configured to perform the transceiver function of the communication device, and the processing module is configured to perform functions of the communication device other than the transceiver function.

[0048] Optionally, the transceiver module may include a transmit module and a receive module. The transmit module is configured to implement the transmission function of the communication device according to the fourth embodiment, and the receive module is configured to implement the receiving function of the communication device according to the fourth embodiment.

[0049] Optionally, the communication device according to the fourth embodiment may further include a storage module. The storage module stores a program or instruction. When the processing module executes the program or instruction, the communication device becomes capable of performing the method according to the first embodiment.

[0050] It can be understood that the communication device according to the fourth aspect may be a terminal, or a chip (system) or other component or component that can be placed in a terminal, or a device including a terminal. This is not limited to the present application.

[0051] Furthermore, for the technical effects of the communication device according to the fourth embodiment, please refer to the technical effects of the method according to the first embodiment. Details will not be explained again in this specification.

[0052] According to a fifth aspect, a communication device is provided. The communication device includes modules configured to perform the method according to the second aspect, for example, a transceiver module and a processing module. For example, the transceiver module is configured to perform the transceiver function of the communication device, and the processing module is configured to perform functions of the communication device other than the transceiver function.

[0053] Optionally, the transceiver module may include a transmit module and a receive module. The transmit module is configured to implement the transmission function of the communication device according to the fifth embodiment, and the receive module is configured to implement the receiving function of the communication device according to the fifth embodiment.

[0054] Optionally, the communication device according to the fifth embodiment may further include a storage module. The storage module stores a program or instruction. When the processing module executes the program or instruction, the communication device becomes capable of performing the method according to the second embodiment.

[0055] It can be understood that the communication device according to the fifth embodiment may be a network device, a chip (system) or other component or element that can be placed within a network device, or a device including a network device. This is not limited to the present application.

[0056] Furthermore, for the technical effects of the communication device according to the fifth embodiment, please refer to the technical effects of the method according to the second embodiment. Details will not be explained again in this specification.

[0057] According to the sixth aspect, a communication device is provided. The communication device includes a processor. The processor is configured to perform a method according to any possible implementation of the first or second aspect.

[0058] In possible design solutions, the communication device according to the sixth aspect may further include a transceiver. The transceiver may be a transceiver circuit or an interface circuit. The transceiver may be used by the communication device according to the sixth aspect to communicate with another communication device.

[0059] In possible design solutions, the communication device according to the sixth aspect may further include memory. The memory and processor may be integrated together or located separately. The memory may be configured to store computer programs and / or data related to the method according to either the first or second aspect.

[0060] In the embodiments of this application, the communication device according to the sixth embodiment may be a terminal according to the first embodiment or a network device according to the second embodiment, or a chip (system) or other component or element that can be placed within the terminal or network device, or a device including the terminal or network device.

[0061] Furthermore, for the technical effects of the communication device according to the sixth embodiment, please refer to the technical effects of the method according to any implementation of the first or second embodiment. Details are again not described herein.

[0062] According to the seventh aspect, a communication device is provided. The communication device includes a processor. The processor is coupled to memory and configured to execute a computer program stored in memory, so that the communication device performs a method according to any possible implementation of the first or second aspect.

[0063] In possible design solutions, the communication device according to the seventh aspect may further include a transceiver. The transceiver may be a transceiver circuit or an interface circuit. The transceiver may be used by the communication device according to the seventh aspect to communicate with another communication device.

[0064] In the embodiments of this application, the communication device according to the seventh aspect may be a terminal according to the first aspect or a network device according to the second aspect, or a chip (system) or other component or element that can be placed within the terminal or network device, or a device including a terminal or network device.

[0065] Furthermore, for the technical effects of the communication device according to the seventh embodiment, please refer to the technical effects of the method according to any implementation of the first or second embodiment. Details are again not described herein.

[0066] According to the eighth aspect, a communication device is provided, including a processor and memory. The memory is configured to store a computer program. When the processor executes the computer program, the communication device becomes capable of performing a method according to any implementation of the first or second aspect.

[0067] In possible design solutions, the communication device according to the eighth aspect may further include a transceiver. The transceiver may be a transceiver circuit or an interface circuit. The transceiver may be used by the communication device according to the eighth aspect to communicate with another communication device.

[0068] In the embodiments of this application, the communication device according to the eighth aspect may be a terminal according to the first aspect or a network device according to the second aspect, or a chip (system) or other component or element that can be placed within the terminal or network device, or a device including a terminal or network device.

[0069] Furthermore, for the technical effects of the communication device according to the eighth aspect, please refer to the technical effects of the method according to any implementation of the first or second aspect. Details are again not described herein.

[0070] According to the ninth aspect, a communication system is provided. The communication system includes a terminal configured to perform the method according to the first aspect and a network device configured to perform the method according to the second aspect.

[0071] According to the tenth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided, which includes a computer program or instruction. When the computer program or instruction is executed on the computer, the computer becomes capable of performing a method according to any possible implementation of the first or second aspect.

[0072] According to the eleventh aspect, a computer program product is provided, which includes a computer program or instruction. When the computer program or instruction is executed on a computer, the computer becomes capable of performing a method according to any possible implementation of the first or second aspect. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0073] [Figure 1] This is a diagram of the NTN communication architecture in transparent mode. [Figure 2] This is a diagram of the NTN communication architecture in playback mode. [Figure 3] This is a diagram illustrating a multi-satellite coordinated transmission scenario. [Figure 4] This is a diagram showing the architecture of a communication system according to one embodiment of this application. [Figure 5] This is a schematic flowchart of a communication method according to one embodiment of this application. [Figure 6] This is a diagram showing the service time of cells within a cell set. [Figure 7] This is a diagram showing the structure of a communication device according to one embodiment of this application. [Figure 8] This is a diagram showing the structure of a communication device according to one embodiment of this application. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0074] To facilitate understanding, the following will first explain the technical terms used in the embodiments of this application.

[0075] 1. Non-terrestrial network (NTN) communications: Currently, the New Radio (NR) system is moving from the standardization phase to the commercial deployment phase. The NR system is researched and designed based on the characteristics of terrestrial communications, and is characterized by providing high-rate, high-reliability, and low-latency communication to user terminals. Compared to terrestrial communications, NTN communications have features such as a large coverage area and flexible networking. Currently, research institutions, telecommunications organizations, and companies are all participating in research on NTN communication technologies and standards with the aim of building a unified communication network for space-air-terrestrial communications.

[0076] NTN Communications can use devices such as unmanned aerial vehicles and high-altitude platform stations for networking, and these are used to provide services such as data transmission and voice communication to user equipment (UE). For example, satellites within high-altitude platform stations (HAPS) are generally located at an altitude of 8 km to 50 km above the ground. Satellites can be classified into three types based on their orbital altitude: geostationary earth orbit (GEO) satellites, also called synchronous orbit satellites, medium earth orbit (MEO) satellites, and low earth orbit (LEO) satellites.

[0077] GEO satellites have an orbital altitude of 35,786 km. The main advantage is that GEO satellites remain stationary relative to the ground, providing a large coverage area. However, GEO satellites have the following disadvantages: (1) The orbit of a GEO satellite is far from the Earth, resulting in high free-space propagation loss. As a result, the communication link budget becomes strained. To increase transmission / reception gain, antennas with large diameters need to be configured for the satellite. (2) Communication transmission delay is long, and round-trip delay can reach approximately 500 ms. This cannot meet the requirements of real-time services. (3) GEO satellites have limited orbital resources, high launch costs, and cannot provide coverage to the Earth's polar regions. MEO satellites have an orbital altitude of 2,000 km to 35,786 km. The advantage is that MEO satellites can implement global coverage by using a small number of satellites. However, the orbital altitude of MEO satellites is higher than that of LEO satellites, and the transmission delay is still longer than that of LEO satellites. Therefore, MEO satellites are primarily used for positioning and navigation. LEO satellites have orbital altitudes of 300 km to 2000 km. LEO satellites have lower orbital altitudes than MEO and GEO satellites, offering advantages such as shorter data transmission delays, lower transmission losses, and lower launch costs. Consequently, LEO satellite communications have also attracted considerable attention in recent years.

[0078] NTN communications can be classified based on the satellite's operating mode, including, for example, transparent mode and regenerative mode.

[0079] Figure 1 is a diagram of the NTN communication architecture in transparent mode. As shown in Figure 1, the satellite has relay and forwarding capabilities. The NTN gateway has the functions of a base station or some of the functions of a base station. The NTN gateway may also be understood as a base station, e.g., the next generation Node B (gNB), and the NTN communication delay is the transmission delay from the satellite to the NTN gateway. Alternatively, the NTN gateway and base station may be deployed separately. The NTN communication delay includes two parts: the transmission delay from the satellite to the NTN gateway and the transmission delay from the NTN gateway to the base station. The UE can access the base station via the satellite to communicate with the data network (DN) via the core network (CN), as in 5th generation (5G) CN.

[0080] Figure 2 is a diagram of the NTN communication architecture in regenerative mode. As shown in Figure 2, the satellite has data processing capabilities and functions as a base station or some of the functions of a base station. In other words, the satellite can be understood as a base station. In this case, the UE can access the satellite to communicate with the DN via the CN.

[0081] Regardless of whether it is transparent or regenerative mode, NTN Communications can implement interconnection between satellites and CNs via a defined interface between base stations and CNs, or implement satellite-to-satellite support and interconnection with higher time effectiveness via a defined interface between base stations. In new radio (NR) systems, i.e., 5G systems, the interface between base stations is called the Xn interface, and the interface between base stations and the core network is called the NG interface.

[0082] The above explanation is provided by using satellites as an example, and it should be further understood that satellites can be replaced by other HAPS devices or unmanned aerial vehicles. Satellites can be alternatively classified as mid-Earth orbit satellites, high-Earth orbit satellites, inclined synchronous orbit satellites, synchronous orbit satellites, etc.

[0083] 2. Multi-satellite cooperative transmission: NTN Communications' data processing capacity and transmission power are typically limited by the manufacturing and launch costs of satellites, and as a result, NTN Communications may not be able to provide UEs with communication speeds comparable to those of terrestrial communications at any given time. To overcome this limitation, satellite operators are preparing to deploy a massive low Earth orbit constellation to compensate for the limitations of a single satellite's communication capabilities, primarily by increasing the number of low Earth orbit satellites. In this case, a UE may discover multiple low Earth orbit satellites that can communicate with each other within a given period. In other words, multiple low Earth orbit satellites that can communicate with each other are visible to the UE. All of these multiple low Earth orbit satellites can provide communication services to the UE, implement multi-satellite coordinated transmission, and improve NTN Communications' overall signal processing capacity and communication throughput. For ease of explanation, unless otherwise specified, satellites referred to below may be understood as low Earth orbit satellites.

[0084] Figure 3 is a diagram of a multi-satellite coordinated transmission scenario. As shown in Figure 3, the ground physical areas may include Area 1, Area 2, and Area 3. Area 1 is adjacent to Area 2, and Area 2 is adjacent to Area 3. Multiple satellites can orbit sequentially over Areas 1 through 3 so that the signals from multiple satellites sequentially cover Areas 1 through 3 and sequentially provide services to UEs within Areas 1 through 3.

[0085] Area 1 is used as an example. As satellite 1a moves through orbit until its signal begins to cover Area 1, it can be considered that satellite 1a provides cell 1a, i.e., cell 1a is created. Cell 1a may be understood as a logical area and is configured to serve a UE in Area 1, e.g., UE 1. The time when satellite 1a's signal begins to cover Area 1 may be understood as the time when satellite 1a begins to serve Area 1, i.e., the service start time of cell 1a. Then, as satellite 1a moves through orbit until its signal can no longer cover Area 1, it can be considered that cell 1a provided by satellite 1a is terminated, i.e., cell 1a disappears and can no longer serve UE 1. The time when satellite 1a's signal cannot cover Area 1 may also be understood as the time when satellite 1a stops serving Area 1, i.e., the service end time of cell 1a. The time period between the service start time and service end time of cell 1a can be understood as the time period during which cell 1a exists, or the service time period, in other words, the time period during which satellite 1a provides service to area 1. To ensure service continuity, before cell 1a disappears, satellite 1b, which is in the same orbit as satellite 1a, may move its orbit until satellite 1b's signal begins to cover area 1, and cell 1b is generated to continue providing service to UE 1. Then, when satellite 1b moves in orbit until satellite 1b's signal can no longer cover area 1, cell 1b disappears and can no longer provide service to UE 1. Before cell 1b disappears, satellite 1c, which is in the same orbit as satellite 1b, may move its orbit until satellite 1c's signal begins to cover area 1, and cell 1c is generated to continue providing service to UE 1. The rest can be inferred by analogy. In other words, in the case of Area 1, as multiple satellites move, cells capable of covering Area 1 can be continuously generated within Area 1, and the existence times of temporally adjacent cells can overlap to provide continuous service to UE 1 and avoid service interruptions.

[0086] For the service principles of Areas 2 and 3, it may be understood that they should refer to the relevant explanation for Area 1. Details will not be explained again. In network design, neighboring cells coexisting over a period of time may overlap to ensure seamless coverage. For the sake of simplicity, this specification assumes that the area covered by satellite signals is elliptical, i.e., the shape of the cells is typically circular or elliptical, and as a result, neighboring cells coexisting over a period of time may overlap with each other. In design, the shape of the cells may vary due to different beam policies. For example, if adjacent cells 1a and 2a coexist, cell 1a may cover not only Area 1 but also at least a portion of Area 2. Similarly, cell 2a may cover not only Area 2 but also at least a portion of Area 1 in order to serve at least a portion of Area 1. Cells 1a and 2a may be referred to as neighboring cells. In another example, if adjacent cells 1a and 3a coexist over a period of time, cell 1a may cover not only Area 1 but also at least a portion of Area 3. Similarly, cell 3a may cover at least a portion of area 1, as well as area 3, in order to serve at least a portion of area 1. Cells 1a and 3a may be referred to as neighboring cells. In other words, when cells 1a, 2a, and 3a coexist for a period of time, UE 1 may be located within the coverage area of ​​cell 1a, i.e., may receive signals from satellite 1a based on the location of UE 1, or UE 1 may be located within multiple coverage areas / single coverage areas of cell 2a and / or cell 3a, i.e., may receive multiple signals / single signals from satellite 2a and / or satellite 3a.

[0087] Cells covering Area 1 have time validity. Therefore, when the cell in which UE 1 is located is about to disappear, UE 1 may perform a signal measurement to access a new cell to ensure that UE 1 can continue to receive service. Alternatively, when UE 1 is about to leave the coverage area of ​​the cell in which UE 1 is located, UE 1 may perform a signal measurement to access a new cell to ensure that UE 1 can continue to receive service.

[0088] For example, the cell on which UE 1 is located is cell 1a. The base station may broadcast the end-of-service time of cell 1a to UE 1 via a system information block (SIB) and notify UE 1 of all potential neighboring cells of cell 1a. All potential neighboring cells of cell 1a may be cells that can coexist with cell 1a for a certain period and can cover at least a portion of area 1, and may include, for example, cell 1b, cell 2a, cell 2b, cell 3a, and cell 3b. UE 1 may perform signal measurements on all potential neighboring cells of cell 1a before the end-of-service time of cell 1a. However, the potential neighboring cells that actually exist at different points in time before the end-of-service time of cell 1a will also differ. For example, at time t1, the potential neighboring cells that actually exist may include only cells 2a and cell 3a; at time t2, the potential neighboring cells that actually exist may include only cells 2a, cell 3a, and cell 3b; and at time t3, the potential neighboring cells that actually exist may include only cells 2b and cell 3b. In other words, if the UE performs signal measurements for all potential neighboring cells of cell 1a, the UE may perform signal measurements for potential neighboring cells that do not actually exist, resulting in measurement redundancy and increased power consumption of the UE.

[0089] In another example, the cell on which UE 1 is located is cell 1a. The base station can broadcast the service start and end times of cell 1a, as well as the service start and end times of all potential neighboring cells of cell 1a, to UE 1 via SIB. In this way, when UE 1 performs a signal measurement before the service end time of cell 1a, UE 1 can determine the potential neighboring cells that actually exist at that time based on the service start and end times of cell 1a, as well as the service start and end times of all potential neighboring cells of cell 1a, and as a result, UE 1 can perform a signal measurement only on the potential neighboring cells that actually exist. For example, at time t1, UE 1 may perform a signal measurement only on cells 2a and 3a; at time t2, UE 1 may perform a signal measurement only on cells 2a, 3a, and 3b; and at time t3, UE 1 may perform a signal measurement only on cells 2b and 3b. Thus, redundancy in UE measurements can be avoided and the power consumption of the UE can be reduced. However, broadcasting the service start and end times for all potential neighboring cells would result in significant SIB overhead and reduce communication efficiency.

[0090] In response to the aforementioned technical problems, the embodiments of this application provide the following technical solutions to reduce the overhead of configuration information and improve communication efficiency.

[0091] The technical solution of this application will be described below with reference to the attached drawings.

[0092] The technical solutions in the embodiments of this application can be applied to a variety of communication systems, such as wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) systems, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication systems, device-to-device (D2D) communication systems, vehicle internet communication systems, 4th generation (4G) mobile communication systems, such as long-term evolution (LTE) systems, worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX) communication systems, 5G mobile communication systems, such as NR systems, and future communication systems.

[0093] All aspects, embodiments, or features are presented in this application by describing systems that may include multiple devices, components, modules, etc. It should be recognized and understood that each system may include other devices, components, modules, etc., and / or may not include all of the devices, components, modules, etc. discussed with reference to the accompanying drawings. Furthermore, combinations of these solutions may be used.

[0094] In addition, in the embodiments of this application, terms such as “example” or “for example” are intended to indicate that an example, illustration, or explanation is being given. Any embodiment or design solution described as an “example” in this application should not be described as being preferable or having more advantages than another embodiment or design solution. More precisely, the term “example” is intended to present a concept in a particular way.

[0095] In the embodiments of this application, the terms “information,” “signal,” “message,” “channel,” and “signaling” may be used interchangeably. Unless otherwise emphasized, the meanings of the terms are the same. The terms “of,” “corresponding,” and “corresponding” may be used interchangeably. Unless otherwise emphasized, the meanings of the terms are the same. In addition, “ / ” as used in this application may indicate an “or” relationship.

[0096] The network architectures and service scenarios described in the embodiments of this application are intended to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application and do not constitute a limitation on the technical solutions provided in the embodiments of this application. Those skilled in the art will know that, with the evolution of network architectures and the emergence of new service scenarios, the technical solutions provided in the embodiments of this application are also applicable to similar technical problems.

[0097] To facilitate understanding of the embodiments of this application, the communication system shown in Figure 4 is used first as an example to illustrate in detail a communication system usable in the embodiments of this application. For example, Figure 4 is Figure 1 of the architecture of a communication system to which a cell determination method according to one embodiment of this application can be applied.

[0098] As shown in Figure 4, the communication system mainly includes terminals and network devices.

[0099] A terminal may be a terminal with transceiver functionality, or a chip or chip system that can be placed within a terminal. Terminals may also be referred to as user equipment (UE), access terminal, subscriber unit, subscriber station, mobile station (MS), remote station, remote terminal, mobile device, user terminal, terminal, wireless communication device, user agent, or user equipment. The terminals in the embodiments of this application may include mobile phones, cellular phones, smartphones, tablet computers (Pads), wireless data cards, personal digital assistant (PDA) computers, wireless modems, handheld devices (handsets), laptop computers, machine-type communication (MTC) terminals, computers with wireless receiver functionality, virtual reality (VR) terminals, augmented reality (AR) terminals, wireless terminals in industrial control, wireless terminals in self-driving, wireless terminals in remote medical care, wireless terminals in smart grids, wireless terminals in transportation safety, wireless terminals in smart cities, wireless terminals in smart homes, in-vehicle terminals, and roadside units (RSUs) with terminal functionality. Alternatively, the terminal in this application may be an in-vehicle module, in-vehicle assembly, in-vehicle component, in-vehicle chip, or in-vehicle unit incorporated into a vehicle as one or more parts or units.

[0100] The network device may be a device such as an unmanned aerial vehicle or a high-altitude platform station, for example, a satellite applicable to NTN Communications as shown in Figure 1 or Figure 2. Alternatively, the network device may be a ground device, for example, an access network (AN) device, or may be referred to as a radio access network (RAN) device. The RAN device can provide access functionality to terminals and is responsible for functions such as radio resource management, quality of service (QoS) management, and data compression and encryption on the air interface side. A RAN device may include a single antenna panel or group of antenna panels (including multiple antenna panels) of a gNB in ​​5G, such as an NR system, or a base station in 5G; or it may be a network node forming a gNB, a transmission and reception point (TRP), or a transmission point (TP), or a transmission measurement function (TMF), such as a building baseband unit (BBU), a central unit (CU), or a distributed unit (DU), an RSU with base station functionality, a wired access gateway, or a 5G core network element. Alternatively, a RAN device may include an access point (AP) in a wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) system, a wireless relay node, a wireless backhaul node, various forms of macro base stations, micro base stations (also called small cells), relay stations, access points, wearable devices, and in-vehicle devices. Alternatively, a RAN device may include a 6G access network device, such as a 6G base station, in a next-generation mobile communication system. Alternatively, in next-generation mobile communication systems, network devices may be named in a different way, which falls within the scope of protection of the embodiments of this application.This is not limited to the present application.

[0101] In this embodiment of the application, a network device may acquire and transmit configuration information. The configuration information may include configuration information for a first cell set, which includes service time during which at least two cells in the first cell set provide service to a target object, and the first cell set is a set of cells that provide service to a target object. In this way, a terminal can acquire configuration information and determine a first cell to be measured within the first cell set based on the configuration information of the first cell set in order to perform a measurement. In other words, the network may group all cells together, and cells that can provide service for the same object may be considered a cell set, and different objects may correspond to different cell sets. In this way, for a target object, the configuration information may only indicate the service time during which at least two cells in the first cell set provide service to the target object across all cells. This reduces the overhead of configuration information and improves communication efficiency.

[0102] For ease of understanding, the cell determination method provided in this embodiment of this application will be specifically described below with reference to Figure 5.

[0103] For example, Figure 5 is a schematic flowchart of a cell determination method according to one embodiment of this application. This method is applicable to communication between a network device and a terminal in the communication system described above.

[0104] As shown in Figure 5, the procedure for determining the cell is as follows:

[0105] S501: The network device retrieves configuration information.

[0106] The configuration information may include the configuration information of a first cell set. The configuration information of the first cell set may include the service time during which at least two cells in the first cell set provide service to a target object, and the service time is expressed as the service time of the first cell set. Optionally, the configuration information of the first cell set may further include identifiers of at least two cells in the first cell set, e.g., physical cell identifiers (PCI), or any other possible cell identifiers. This is not limited to these.

[0107] The first cell set may be a set of cells that provide services to a target object. For example, the first cell set may be a set of cells that provide services to a target object over time, e.g., a set of cells from different satellites that provide services to a target object over time, ensuring that the target object can continuously receive services and avoid service interruptions. It can be seen that at least two cells in the first cell set may be understood as at least two serving cells provided by different satellites. These satellites may be low Earth orbit satellites as mentioned in NTN Communications above, or any other possible form of satellite. This is not limited. These satellites may be satellites in the same orbit, or satellites having the same orbit. This is not limited. The target object may be any one of the following: a target area, a target ground station, a target base station, a target terminal, or any other possible form of object. This is not limited. In the case of a target area, a terminal may be located within the target area. In the case of a target ground station or target base station, the target ground station or target base station may provide services to a terminal. In the case of a target terminal, the target terminal may be a terminal, or another terminal that receives services through a terminal. In this case, the terminal may be understood as a relay terminal, and the target terminal may be understood as a remote terminal.

[0108] The service time of the first cell set may include at least one of the service start times of at least two cells in the first cell set, or the service end times of at least two cells in the first cell set. In other words, for cells that can serve the same target object, for example, cells in the first cell set, these cells can typically serve the target object in a time series. In this case, the cells that can serve the target object at any given time may be determined based solely on the service start or end times of the cells. Therefore, the configuration information can indicate only the service start or end times when at least two cells in the first cell set are serving the target object, thereby further reducing the overhead of the configuration information and further improving communication efficiency.

[0109] For example, the service commencement time for at least two cells in a first cell set may be the time when at least two cells begin to service a target object, or the time when at least two cells could begin to service a target object. For example, for any one of the at least two cells, if the satellite providing the cell is in orbit until the satellite's beam can illuminate the target object, the satellite generates the cell to begin service the target object, and this point in time is the cell's service commencement time. The service commencement time for at least two cells in a first cell set may specifically be UTC, and as a result, the terminal determines the time when these cells could begin to service. Alternatively, the service commencement time for at least two cells in a first cell set may be a time offset from a reference UTC, where the reference UTC may be the service commencement time of another cell other than the at least two cells in the first cell set, or where the reference UTC may be any other possible point in time. This is not limited to these points in time.

[0110] Since at least two cells in a first set of cells serve a target object in a time series, it can be understood that the service start time of a cell can be determined by adding a time offset to a base UTC. For example, the base UTC is the service start time of the other cell. When the service durations are the same, the time offset can be the service time, and the service start times of at least two cells can be determined by adding a corresponding amount of time offset to the base UTC. In this case, according to the service sequence, the number of cells between at least two cells and another cell is equal to the number of time offsets added. In this case, the configuration information of the first set of cells can indicate the base UTC and one time offset to further reduce the overhead of the configuration information.

[0111] To facilitate understanding, examples will be used below.

[0112] As shown in Figure 6, cell set 1 includes cell 1a, cell 1b, cell 1c, cell 1d, cell 1e, and cell 1f.

[0113] Case 1: An example of the configuration information for cell set 1 may be shown in Table 1.

[0114] [Table 1]

[0115] Table 1 shows that the service start times for each cell within cell 1a to cell 1f may be UTC, and as a result, the terminal directly determines the time when each cell within cell 1a to cell 1f begins providing service.

[0116] Case 2: An example of the configuration information for cell set 1 can be shown in Table 2.

[0117] [Table 2]

[0118] Table 2 shows that the service start time for cell 1a may be UTC and is used as the reference UTC. The PCI sequence PCI#1a to PCI#1f may implicitly indicate the service sequence for cells 1a to 1f. The service start time t11a may be used by the terminal to directly determine when cell 1a begins providing service. The service sequence from cell 1a to cell 1f and the time offset Δt1 may be used together by the terminal to determine when cell 1b to cell 1f begins providing service. For example, the service ranking for PCI#1b is one consecutive position after the service ranking for PCI#1a, and the service start time for cell 1b is service start time t11a + 1 * time offset Δt1; the service ranking for PCI#1c is two consecutive positions after the service ranking for PCI#1a, and the service start time for cell 1c is service start time t11a + 2 * time offset Δt1; the service ranking for PCI#1c is three consecutive positions after the service ranking for PCI#1a, and the service start time for cell 1c is service start time t11a + 3 * time offset Δt1. The rest can be inferred by analogy. In addition, the use of the service start time for cell 1a as the reference UTC is merely an example and is not limited to this. The service start time of any of cells 1a through 1f may be used as the reference UTC.

[0119] In another example, the end-of-service time for at least two cells in a first cell set may be the time when at least two cells cease to provide service to a target object, or the time when at least two cells may cease to provide service to a target object. For example, for any one of the at least two cells, if the satellite providing the cell travels in orbit until the satellite's beam can no longer illuminate the target object, the cell providing service to the target object ceases to exist and ceases to provide service to the target object, and this point in time is the end-of-service time for the cell. Similar to the start-up time, the end-of-service time for at least two cells in a first cell set may also be UTC, and as a result, the terminal determines the time when these cells cease service. Alternatively, the end-of-service time for at least two cells in a first cell set may be a time offset from base UTC to further reduce the overhead of configuration information.

[0120] Please refer to Figure 6 for easier understanding. The above example will be explained further.

[0121] Case 3: An example of the configuration information for cell set 1 can be shown in Table 3.

[0122] [Table 3]

[0123] Table 3 shows that the service termination times for each cell within cell 1a to cell 1f may be UTC, and as a result, the terminal directly determines the time when each cell within cell 1a to cell 1f stops providing services.

[0124] Case 4: An example of the configuration information for cell set 1 may be shown in Table 4.

[0125] [Table 4]

[0126] Table 4 shows that the end-of-service time for cell 1a may be UTC and is used as the reference UTC. The PCI sequence PCI#1a to PCI#1f may implicitly indicate the service sequence for cell 1a to cell 1f. The end-of-service time t12a may be used by the terminal to directly determine when cell 1a will cease providing service. The service sequence from cell 1a to cell 1f and the time offset Δt1 may be used together by the terminal to determine when cell 1b to cell 1f will cease providing service. For example, the service ranking for PCI#1b is one position immediately following the service ranking for PCI#1a, and the end-of-service time for cell 1b is t1a + 1 * time offset Δt1; the service ranking for PCI#1c is two positions immediately following the service ranking for PCI#1a, and the end-of-service time for cell 1c is t1a + 2 * time offset Δt1; the service ranking for PCI#1c is three positions immediately following the service ranking for PCI#1a, and the end-of-service time for cell 1c is t1a + 3 * time offset Δt1. The rest can be inferred by analogy. In addition, the use of the end-of-service time for cell 1a as the reference UTC is merely an example and is not limited to this. The end-of-service time for any of cells 1a through 1f may be used as the reference UTC.

[0127] In addition, the service time of the first cell set may further include any other possible time, for example, an intermediate time between at least two cells in the first cell set. The intermediate time may lie between the service start time and service end time of at least two cells, or it may be a time agreed upon by the terminal and network devices, so that the terminal roughly determines the service start time and / or service end time of at least two cells.

[0128] It can be understood that the configuration information of the first cell set may further include other information about at least two cells within the first cell set, such as frequency and subcarrier spacing. Further details are not provided again.

[0129] It may be further understood that the cells referred to in embodiments of this application may alternatively be understood as beams, physical broadcast channel (PBCH) blocks, or pilots, such as demodulation reference signal (DMRS) ports or channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) ports. The cell sets referred to in embodiments of this application may alternatively be understood as beam sets, PBCH sets, or pilot sets, such as DMRS port sets or CSI-RS port sets. This is not limited to these.

[0130] In this embodiment of the application, configuration information of a first cell set may be used by the terminal to determine the cell to be measured within the first cell set. The cell to be measured is a cell that needs to be measured by the terminal at a corresponding point in time. For example, the end-of-service time of the cell to be measured may be before that point in time, or the start-of-service time of the cell to be measured may be after that point in time. For specific implementation principles, see the relevant description in S503. Details are not described.

[0131] S502: The network device transmits configuration information. The terminal retrieves the configuration information.

[0132] A network device may broadcast configuration information, for example, a Social Impact Band (SIB) or any other possible informational elements that carry the configuration information. Alternatively, a network device may transmit configuration information to a terminal in a directional manner, for example, by sending a radio resource control (RRC) message that carries the configuration information. In response, the terminal may receive the configuration information from the network device. Indeed, if the terminal is pre-configured with configuration information, the terminal may, alternatively, obtain the configuration information locally and directly.

[0133] S503: The terminal determines the first cell to be measured within the first cell set based on the configuration information of the first cell set.

[0134] The first cell to be measured may be a cell that needs to be measured at a first time within the first set of cells. The first time may be the point in time when the terminal determines that a cell measurement should be performed. For example, the terminal determines that a cell measurement should be performed when it determines that it is located on the edge of the cell in which it is currently located, or when it determines that the cell in which it is currently located is about to cease providing service. The end-of-service time for the first cell to be measured may be before the first time, or the start-of-service time for the first cell to be measured may be after the first time.

[0135] In possible implementations, service start time is used as an example. At least two cells in the first cell set include a first cell and a second cell whose service start times are adjacent. The first time is after the service start time of the first cell, and the first time is before the service start time of the second cell, and the first cell under measurement includes the first cell. In other words, the terminal can determine the first cell as the first cell under measurement in order to perform a measurement on the second cell. To ensure service continuity, it can be understood that the service times of the first cell and the service times of the second cell usually overlap. For example, when the second cell begins providing service, the first cell has not stopped providing service. In this case, if the first time is between the service start time of the first cell and the service start time of the second cell, the first cell is providing service. Therefore, the terminal may perform a measurement on the first cell that is providing service, and does not need to perform a measurement on the second cell that has not started providing service, thereby avoiding measurement redundancy and reducing the terminal's power consumption.

[0136] Optionally, at least two cells in the first cell set may further include a third cell whose service start time is adjacent to the service start time of the first cell, the service start time of the third cell being earlier than the service start time of the first cell, and the first measured cell further includes the third cell. In other words, the terminal may decide that the third cell is the first measured cell in order to perform measurements on the third cell. It can be understood that the service times of the first cell and the service times of the third cell usually overlap. For example, when the first cell begins providing service, the third cell has not stopped providing service in order to ensure service continuity. In this case, the third cell may not have stopped providing service at the first time. Therefore, the terminal needs to perform measurements on the third cell that may be providing service in order to ensure that the terminal can discover more cells that are providing service.

[0137] Indeed, whether the terminal determines the third cell as the first cell to be measured may further depend on the length of time between the first time and the service start time of the first cell. For example, if the time between the first time and the service start time of the first cell is long, the third cell may have stopped providing service. Therefore, the terminal does not need to determine the third cell as the first cell to be measured and does not perform a measurement on the third cell. In another example, if the time between the first time and the service start time of the first cell is short, it is highly likely that the third cell has not stopped providing service. Therefore, the terminal can determine the third cell as the first cell to be measured and perform a measurement on the third cell.

[0138] Please refer to Figure 6 for easier understanding. The above example will be explained further.

[0139] In either Case 1 or Case 2, at the first time T1, the terminal can determine, based on cells 1a through 1f, that cell 1a may not have stopped providing services, cell 1b may have started providing services, and cell 1c may not have started providing services. Therefore, the terminal can determine that cells 1a and 1b are the first cells to be measured and can perform measurements on cells 1a and 1b.

[0140] Alternatively, in another possible implementation, end-of-service time is used as an example. At least two cells in the first set of cells have end-of-service times that are adjacent to each other, a first cell and a second cell. The first time is after the end-of-service time of the first cell, and the first time is before the end-of-service time of the second cell, and the first cell being measured includes the second cell. In other words, the terminal determines the second cell to be the first cell being measured in order to perform a measurement on the second cell. To ensure service continuity, it can be understood that the service times of the first cell and the service times of the second cell usually overlap. For example, when the first cell stops providing service, the second cell starts providing service. In this case, the second cell is providing service if the first time is between the end-of-service time of the first cell and the end-of-service time of the second cell. Therefore, the terminal may perform measurements on the second cell that is providing the service, and does not need to perform measurements on the first cell that has stopped providing the service, thereby avoiding measurement redundancy and reducing the terminal's power consumption.

[0141] Optionally, at least two cells in the first set of cells further include a third cell whose end-of-service time is adjacent to the end-of-service time of the second cell, and whose end-of-service time is after the end-of-service time of the second cell, and the first measured cells further include the third cell. In other words, the terminal decides the third cell to be the first measured cell in order to perform measurements on the third cell. It can be understood that the service times of the second cell and the third cell usually overlap. For example, the third cell may have started providing service to ensure service continuity before the second cell ceases providing service. In this case, the third cell may have started providing service at the first time, or the third cell may be a potential serving cell. Therefore, the terminal needs to perform measurements on the third cell that may be providing service in order to ensure that the terminal can discover more cells that are providing service.

[0142] Indeed, whether the terminal determines the third cell as the first cell to be measured may further depend on the length of time between the first time and the end-of-service time of the second cell. For example, if the time between the first time and the end-of-service time of the second cell is long, it is likely that the second cell has not yet stopped providing service, and the third cell has not yet started providing service. Therefore, the terminal does not need to determine the third cell as the first cell to be measured, and does not perform a measurement on the third cell. In another example, if the time between the first time and the end-of-service time of the second cell is short, it is likely that the second cell is about to stop providing service, and the third cell has already started providing service. Therefore, the terminal can determine the third cell as the first cell to be measured and perform a measurement on the third cell.

[0143] Please refer to Figure 6 for easier understanding. The above example will be explained further.

[0144] In case 3 or case 4, at the first time T2, the terminal can determine, based on cells 1a through 1f, that cell 1a has stopped providing services, cell 1b has not stopped providing services, and cell 1c may have started providing services. Therefore, the terminal can determine that cells 1b and 1c are the first cells to be measured and can perform measurements on cells 1b and 1c.

[0145] In conclusion, the network may group all cells, and cells capable of providing service for the same object may be considered a cell set, with different objects corresponding to different cell sets. In this way, for a target object, the configuration information can only indicate the service time during which at least two cells in a first cell set across all cells provide service to the target object. This reduces the overhead of configuration information and improves communication efficiency.

[0146] Optionally, referring to the embodiments described above, the configuration information may further include configuration information for a second cell set. The configuration information for the second cell set may include service times for at least two cells in the second cell set. Optionally, the configuration information for the second cell set may further include identifiers for at least two cells in the second cell set, e.g., PCI, or any other possible cell identifiers. This is not limited to these.

[0147] The second cell set may be a set of cells that provide services for another object. For example, the second cell set may be a set of cells that provide services to another object over time, specifically, a set of cells from different satellites that provide services to another object over time, thereby ensuring that the other object can continuously obtain services and avoid service interruptions. It can be seen that, as with the first cell set, at least two cells in the second cell set may also be understood as at least two serving cells provided by different satellites. For further details, see the relevant description of the first cell set. Further details will not be provided again. The other object may be a different object from the target object described above, and may include, but is not limited to, a different area, a different ground station, a different base station, or a different terminal, or any other possible form of object.

[0148] The service times of at least two cells in the second cell set may include at least one of the service start times or service end times of at least two cells in the second cell set. It can be seen that, as with the first cell set, the cells that can provide service at any given time may be determined solely on the service start or end times of at least two cells in the second cell set. Therefore, the configuration information may alternatively indicate only the service start or end times of at least two cells in the second cell set that provide service, thereby further reducing the overhead of the configuration information and further improving communication efficiency.

[0149] For example, the service start time for at least two cells in the second set of cells may be the time when at least two cells begin providing service for another object, or the time when at least two cells could begin providing service. For specific implementations, see the relevant descriptions above. Details are again not described. The service start time for at least two cells in the second set of cells may specifically be UTC, and as a result, the terminal determines the time when these cells can begin providing service. Alternatively, the service start time for at least two cells in the second set of cells may be a time offset from base UTC. Base UTC may be the service start time of cells other than at least two cells in the second set of cells, or base UTC may be any other possible time, e.g., the service start time or service end time of cells in the first set of cells. This is not limited to these.

[0150] Similar to the first cell set, when the reference UTC is the service start time of cells in the second cell set other than at least two cells, and the service duration of any two cells in the second cell set is the same, it can be understood that the configuration information for the second cell set may alternatively represent the reference UTC and one time offset to further reduce the overhead of the configuration information. Furthermore, if the reference UTC is the service start or end time of a cell in the first cell set, there may be multiple time offsets, each of which may be a time offset between the service start time of a cell in the second cell set and the reference UTC. Alternatively, if the reference UTC is the service start or end time of a cell in the first cell set, and the service duration of any two cells in the second cell set is the same, there may be two time offsets. One time offset may be a time offset between the service start time of a target cell in the second cell set and the reference UTC, and the other time offset may be the service times of any two cells in the second cell set. In this case, the service start times of cells other than the target cell in the second cell set can be determined by adding a corresponding amount of time offset to the service start time of the target cell. For example, according to the service sequence, the number of cells between the target cell and the cells other than the target cell in the second cell set is equal to the number of time offsets added. In this case, the configuration information of the second cell set can indicate a base UTC and two time offsets to reduce the overhead of the configuration information.

[0151] To facilitate understanding, the above example will be explained below.

[0152] As shown in Figure 6, cell set 2 may include cells 2a, 2b, 2c, 2d, 2e, and 2f.

[0153] Case A: An example of the configuration information for cell set 2 can be shown in Table 5.

[0154] [Table 5]

[0155] From Table A, it can be seen that the service start times for each cell within cell 2a to cell 2f may be UTC, and as a result, the terminal directly determines the time when each cell within cell 2a to cell 2f begins providing service.

[0156] Case B: An example of configuration information for cell set 2 may be shown in Table 6.

[0157] [Table 6]

[0158] Table 6 shows that the service start time for cell 2a may be UTC and is used as the reference UTC. The PCI sequence PCI#2a~PCI#2f implicitly indicates the service sequence for cells 2a~2f. The service start time t21a may be used by the terminal to directly determine when cell 2a begins providing service. The service sequence and time offset Δt2 from cell 2a to cell 2f may be used together by the terminal to determine when cell 2b to cell 2f begins providing service. For example, the service ranking for PCI#2b is one consecutive position after the service ranking for PCI#2a, and the service start time for cell 2b is service start time t21a + 1 * time offset Δt2; the service ranking for PCI#2c is two consecutive positions after the service ranking for PCI#2a, and the service start time for cell 2c is service start time t21a + 2 * time offset Δt2. The rest can be inferred by analogy. Note that using the service start time of cell 2a as the base UTC is just one example and is not limited to this. The service start time of any of cells 2a through 2f may be used as the base UTC.

[0159] Case C: An example of the configuration information for cell set 2 can be shown in Table 7.

[0160] [Table 7]

[0161] Table 7 shows that the service start time of cell 1a may be UTC and used as the reference UTC for cell 2a, and as a result, the service start time of cell 2a may be determined based on the service start time t11a and the time offset Δt21, for example, service start time t11a + time offset Δt21. The service start time of cell 2a may also be used as the reference UTC for cells 2b to 2f. The PCI sequence of PCI#2a to PCI#2f can implicitly indicate the service sequence of cells 2a to 2f. The service sequence and time offset Δt22 from cell 2a to cell 2f may be used together by the terminal to determine when cells 2b to 2f begin providing service. For example, the service ranking for PCI#2b is one position immediately following the service ranking for PCI#2a, and the service start time for cell 2b is service start time t11a + time offset Δt21 + time offset Δt22. The service ranking for PCI#2c is two positions immediately following the service ranking for PCI#2a, and the service start time for cell 2c is service start time t11a + time offset Δt21 + 2*time offset Δt2. The rest can be inferred by analogy. Note that using the service start time of cell 2a as the reference UTC for cells 2b to 2f is just one example and not limited to this. The service start time of any cell from 2a to 2f may be used as the reference UTC.

[0162] In another example, the end-of-service times for at least two cells in the second cell set may be the time when at least two cells cease to provide service for another object, or the time when at least two cells may cease to provide service for another object. For specific implementations, see the relevant descriptions above. Further details are not provided again. Similar to the start-of-service times, the end-of-service times for at least two cells in the second cell set may also be UTC, and as a result, the terminal determines the time when service for these cells ends. Alternatively, the end-of-service times for at least two cells in the second cell set may be a time offset from base UTC to further reduce the overhead of configuration information.

[0163] Please refer to Figure 6 for easier understanding. The above example will be explained further.

[0164] Case D: An example of the configuration information for cell set 2 can be shown in Table 8.

[0165] [Table 8]

[0166] Table 8 shows that the service termination times for each cell within cell 2a to cell 2f may be UTC, and as a result, the terminal directly determines the time when each cell within cell 2a to cell 2f stops providing services.

[0167] Case E: An example of the configuration information for cell set 2 can be shown in Table 9.

[0168] [Table 9]

[0169] Table 9 shows that the end-of-service time for cell 2a may be UTC and is used as the reference UTC. The PCI sequence from PCI#2a to PCI#2f implicitly indicates the service sequence from cell 2a to cell 2f. The end-of-service time t22a may be used by the terminal to directly determine when cell 2a will cease providing service. The service sequence and time offset Δt2 from cell 2a to cell 2f may be used together by the terminal to determine when cell 2b to cell 2f will cease providing service. For example, the service ranking for PCI#2b is one consecutive position after the service ranking for PCI#2a, and the end-of-service time for cell 2b is end-of-service time t22a + 1 * time offset Δt2; the service ranking for PCI#2c is two consecutive positions after the service ranking for PCI#2a, and the end-of-service time for cell 2c is end-of-service time t22a + 2 * time offset Δt2. The rest can be inferred by analogy. Note that using the service termination time of cell 2a as the base UTC is just one example and is not limited to this. You may also use the service termination time of any of cells 2a through 2f as the base UTC.

[0170] Case F: An example of the configuration information for cell set 2 can be shown in Table 10.

[0171] [Table 10]

[0172] Table 10 shows that the end-of-service time for cell 1a may be UTC and used as the reference UTC for cell 2a, and as a result, the end-of-service time for cell 2a may be determined based on the end-of-service time t12a and the time offset Δt21, for example, end-of-service time t12a + time offset Δt21. The end-of-service time for cell 2a may also be used as the reference UTC for cells 2b to 2f. The PCI sequence of PCI#2a to PCI#2f can implicitly indicate the service sequence for cells 2a to 2f. The service sequence and time offset Δt22 from cell 2a to cell 2f may be used together by the terminal to determine when cells 2b to 2f begin providing service. For example, the service ranking for PCI#2b is one position immediately following the service ranking for PCI#2a, and the end-of-service time for cell 2b is end-of-service time t12a + time offset Δt21 + time offset Δt22. The service ranking for PCI#2c is two positions immediately following the service ranking for PCI#2a, and the end-of-service time for cell 2c is end-of-service time t12a + time offset Δt21 + 2*time offset Δt2. The rest can be inferred by analogy. Note that using the end-of-service time of cell 2a as the reference UTC for cells 2b to 2f is just one example and is not limited to this. The end-of-service time of any cell from 2a to 2f may be used as the reference UTC.

[0173] In addition, the service time of the second cell set may further include any other possible time, for example, the intermediate time between at least two cells in the first cell set. The intermediate time may lie between the service start time and service end time of at least two cells, or may be a time agreed upon by the terminal and the network, so that the terminal roughly determines the service start time and / or service end time of at least two cells.

[0174] The above example shows how the configuration information for cell set 1 and cell set 2 can be shown through different entries, but it should be understood that this is not limited to this. For example, the configuration information for cell set 1 and cell set 2 could alternatively be shown through a single entry.

[0175] It can be further understood that the configuration information of the second cell set may further include other information about at least two cells within the second cell set, such as frequency and subcarrier spacing. Further details are again not provided.

[0176] In this embodiment of the application, at least two cells in the second cell set may partially overlap with at least two cells in the first cell set and be used as neighboring cells to at least two cells in the first cell set. In this case, when at least two cells in the second cell set provide services for another object, at least two cells in the second cell set can also provide services for a target object. For example, at least two cells in the second cell set may cover a portion of a target area to provide services to a portion of the target area. Alternatively, a target ground station, target base station, or target terminal may be located in the overlapping area between at least two cells in the second cell set and at least two cells in the first cell set, and at least two cells in the second cell set can also provide services to the target ground station, target base station, or target terminal. Thus, the terminal can further determine a second cell to measure in the second cell set based on configuration information of the second cell set. The second cell to be measured may be a cell in the second cell set that can serve the target object in the first time, i.e., a cell in the second cell set that needs to be measured in the first time, and as a result, the terminal can ensure that it can perform measurements on the second cell to be measured that can serve the target object and discover more cells that the terminal is serving.

[0177] In possible implementations, service start times are used as an example. At least two cells in the second set of cells may include adjacent fourth and fifth cells whose service start times are after the fourth cell's service start time, and before the fifth cell's service start time, and the second cell under measurement includes the fourth cell. In other words, the terminal may decide that the fourth cell is the second cell under measurement in order to perform measurements on the fourth cell. To ensure service continuity, it can be understood that the service times of the fourth cell and the fifth cell usually overlap. For example, when the fifth cell begins providing service, the fourth cell has not stopped providing service. In this case, if the first time is between the service start time of the fourth cell and the service start time of the fifth cell, the fourth cell is providing service. Therefore, the terminal may perform measurements on the fourth cell, which is providing service, and does not need to perform measurements on the fifth cell, which has not started providing service, thereby avoiding measurement redundancy and reducing the terminal's power consumption.

[0178] Optionally, at least two cells in the second set of cells may further include a sixth cell whose service start time is adjacent to the service start time of the fourth cell, the service start time of the sixth cell being earlier than the service start time of the fourth cell, and the second set of measured cells further includes the sixth cell. In other words, the terminal may further determine the sixth cell as the second set of measured cells in order to perform measurements on the sixth cell. It can be understood that the service times of the fourth cell and the sixth cell usually overlap. For example, when the fourth cell begins providing service, the sixth cell has not stopped providing service in order to ensure service continuity. In this case, the sixth cell may not have stopped providing service in the first time. Therefore, the terminal needs to perform measurements on the sixth cell that may be providing service in order to ensure that the terminal can discover more cells that are providing service.

[0179] Indeed, whether the terminal determines the sixth cell as the second cell to be measured may further depend on the length of time between the first time and the service start time of the fourth cell. The specific implementation principle is the same as that of the third cell. For details, please refer to the third cell. Details will not be explained again.

[0180] Please refer to Figure 6 for easier understanding. The above example will be explained further.

[0181] In case A or case B, at the first time t1, the terminal can determine, based on cells 2a through 2f, that cell 2a may not have stopped providing services, cell 2b may have started providing services, and cell 2c may not have started providing services. Therefore, the terminal can determine that cells 2a and 2b are the second cells to be measured and can perform measurements on cells 2a and 2b.

[0182] Alternatively, in another possible implementation, end-of-service time is used as an example. At least two cells in the second set of cells may include adjacent fourth and fifth cells whose end-of-service times are after the fourth cell's end-of-service time, and before the fifth cell's end-of-service time, and the second measured cell includes the fifth cell. In other words, the terminal may decide that the fifth cell is the second measured cell in order to perform a measurement on the fifth cell. To ensure service continuity, it can be understood that the service times of the fourth cell and the fifth cell usually overlap. For example, when the fourth cell stops providing service, the fifth cell begins providing service. In this case, if the first time is between the end-of-service time of the fourth cell and the end-of-service time of the fifth cell, the fifth cell is providing service. Therefore, the terminal may perform measurements on the fifth cell that is providing service, and does not need to perform measurements on the fourth cell that has stopped providing service, thereby avoiding measurement redundancy and reducing the terminal's power consumption.

[0183] Optionally, the second set of cells may further include a sixth cell whose end-of-service time is adjacent to the end-of-service time of the fifth cell, and whose end-of-service time is after that of the fifth cell, and the second set of measured cells further includes the sixth cell. In other words, the terminal may decide that the sixth cell is the second set of measured cells in order to perform measurements on the sixth cell. It can be understood that the service times of the fifth cell and the sixth cell usually overlap. For example, the sixth cell may have started providing service to ensure service continuity before the fifth cell ceases providing service. In this case, the sixth cell may have started providing service at the first time. Therefore, the terminal needs to perform measurements on the sixth cell that may be providing service in order to ensure that the terminal can discover more cells that are providing service.

[0184] Indeed, whether the terminal determines the sixth cell as the second cell to be measured may further depend on the length of time between the first time and the end-of-service time of the fifth cell. The specific implementation principle is the same as that of the third cell. For details, please refer to the third cell. Details will not be explained again.

[0185] Please refer to Figure 6 for easier understanding. The above example will be explained further.

[0186] In case C or case D, at the first time t1, the terminal can determine, based on cells 2a through 2f, that cell 2a has stopped providing services, cell 2b has not stopped providing services, and cell 2c may have started providing services. Therefore, the terminal can determine that cells 2b and 2c are the first cells to be measured and can perform measurements on cells 2b and 2c.

[0187] It can be understood that, in addition to at least two cells in the second set of cells, the neighboring cells of at least two cells in the first set of cells may further include other cells in another set of cells. The specific implementation principle of neighboring cells is similar to that of at least two cells in the second set of cells. For details on the specific implementation principle, please refer to the explanation. Further details will not be explained again.

[0188] The above describes in detail the cell determination method provided in the embodiments of this application with reference to Figure 5. Below, with reference to Figures 7 and 8, a communication device configured to perform the cell determination method provided in the embodiments of this application will be described in detail.

[0189] Figure 7 is a diagram showing the structure of a communication device according to one embodiment of the present application. For example, as shown in Figure 7, the communication device 700 includes a transceiver module 701 and a processing module 702. The transceiver module 701 is configured to perform the transceiver function of the communication device 700, and the processing module 702 is configured to perform functions other than the transceiver function of the communication device 700.

[0190] For the sake of clarity, Figure 7 shows only the main components of the communication device.

[0191] In some embodiments, the communication device 700 may be applied to the communication system shown in Figure 4 and perform the functions of a terminal in the manner shown in Figure 4.

[0192] The transceiver module 701 is configured to acquire configuration information. The configuration information includes configuration information for a first cell set, which includes service times for at least two cells in the first cell set that provide service to a target object, and the first cell set is a set of cells that provide service to a target object. The processing module 702 is configured to determine a first cell to be measured in the first cell set based on the configuration information for the first cell set.

[0193] In a possible design solution, the service time during which at least two cells in the first cell set serve the target object includes at least one of the service start times of the at least two cells in the first cell set or the service end times of the at least two cells in the first cell set.

[0194] Optionally, at least two cells in the first cell set include a first cell and a second cell with adjacent end-of-service times, the first time at which the terminal begins measurement is after the end-of-service time of the first cell, the first time is before the end-of-service time of the second cell, and the first cell to be measured includes the second cell.

[0195] Furthermore, at least two cells in the first cell set further include a third cell whose end-of-service time is adjacent to the end-of-service time of the second cell, the end-of-service time of the third cell being after the end-of-service time of the second cell, and the first measured cell further includes the third cell.

[0196] Optionally, at least two cells in the first cell set include a first cell and a second cell with adjacent service start times, the first time at which the terminal begins measurement is after the service start time of the first cell, the first time is before the service start time of the second cell, and the first cell to be measured includes the first cell.

[0197] Furthermore, at least two cells within the first cell set further include a third cell whose service start time is adjacent to the service start time of the first cell, the service start time of the third cell being earlier than the service start time of the first cell, and the first cell under measurement further includes the third cell.

[0198] In a possible design solution, the first cell set is a set of cells that serve a target object over time, specifically, a set of cells from different satellites that serve a target object over time.

[0199] In a possible design solution, the configuration information further includes configuration information for a second cell set, the configuration information for the second cell set includes service times provided by at least two cells in the second cell set, and the at least two cells in the second cell set partially overlap with at least two cells in the first cell set. The processing module 702 is further configured to determine a second cell to be measured in the second cell set based on the configuration information for the second cell set.

[0200] Optionally, the service time of at least two cells in the second set of cells includes at least one of the service start times of at least two cells in the second set of cells, or the service end times of at least two cells in the second set of cells.

[0201] Furthermore, at least two cells in the second cell set include a fourth and a fifth cell whose end-of-service times are adjacent, the first time at which the terminal begins measurement is after the end-of-service time of the fourth cell, and the first time is before the end-of-service time of the fifth cell, and the second cell under measurement includes the fifth cell.

[0202] Furthermore, at least two cells in the second set of cells further include a sixth cell whose end-of-service time is adjacent to the end-of-service time of the fifth cell, and the end-of-service time of the sixth cell is after the end-of-service time of the fifth cell, and the second set of cells to be measured further includes the sixth cell.

[0203] Furthermore, at least two cells in the second cell set include a fourth and a fifth cell whose service start times are adjacent, the first time at which the terminal begins measurement is after the service start time of the fourth cell, and the first time is before the service start time of the fifth cell, and the second cell under measurement includes the fourth cell.

[0204] Furthermore, at least two cells in the second set of cells further include a sixth cell whose service start time is adjacent to the service start time of the fourth cell, and the service start time of the sixth cell is before the service start time of the fourth cell, and the second set of cells to be measured further includes the sixth cell.

[0205] In a possible design solution, the service times of at least two cells are either Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) or at least two cells have a time offset relative to base UTC.

[0206] In a possible design solution, the target object is one of the following: a target area, a target ground station, a target base station, or a target terminal.

[0207] Optionally, the transceiver module 701 may include a transmitting module (not shown in Figure 7) and a receiving module (not shown in Figure 7). The transmitting module is configured to implement the transmission function of the communication device 700, and the receiving module is configured to implement the receiving function of the communication device 700.

[0208] Optionally, the communication device 700 may further include a storage module (not shown in Figure 7) which stores a program or instruction. When the processing module 702 executes the program or instruction, the communication device 700 becomes capable of performing the functions of a terminal in the manner shown in Figure 5.

[0209] It can be understood that the communication device 700 may be a terminal, a chip (system) or another component or element that can be placed in a terminal, or a device including a terminal. This is not limited to the present application.

[0210] Furthermore, for the technical effects of the communication device 700, please refer to the technical effects of the method shown in Figure 5. Further details will not be explained again in this specification.

[0211] In some embodiments, the communication device 700 is applied to the communication system shown in Figure 4 and can perform the functions of a network device in the manner shown in Figure 5.

[0212] The processing module 702 is configured to acquire configuration information, and the transceiver module 701 is configured to transmit configuration information. The configuration information includes configuration information for a first cell set. The configuration information for the first cell set includes service times in which at least two cells in the first cell set provide service to a target object. The first cell set is a set of cells that provide service to a target object, and the configuration information for the first cell set is used by the terminal to determine which cells in the first cell set are being measured.

[0213] In a possible design solution, the service time during which at least two cells in the first cell set serve the target object includes at least one of the service start times of the at least two cells in the first cell set or the service end times of the at least two cells in the first cell set.

[0214] In a possible design solution, the first set of cells is a set of cells that serve the target object in a time series.

[0215] In a possible design solution, the first set of cells would be from different satellites and would be a set of cells that serve a target object in a time series.

[0216] In a possible design solution, the configuration information further includes configuration information for a second cell set. The configuration information for the second cell set includes the service times of at least two cells within the second cell set. At least two cells within the second cell set partially overlap with at least two cells within the first cell set, and the configuration information for the second cell set is used by the terminal to determine which cells within the second cell set are being measured.

[0217] Optionally, the service time of at least two cells in the second set of cells includes at least one of the service start times of at least two cells in the second set of cells, or the service end times of at least two cells in the second set of cells.

[0218] In a possible design solution, the service times of at least two cells are either Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) or at least two cells have a time offset relative to base UTC.

[0219] In a possible design solution, the target object is one of the following: a target area, a target ground station, a target base station, or a target terminal.

[0220] Optionally, the transceiver module 701 may include a transmitting module (not shown in Figure 7) and a receiving module (not shown in Figure 7). The transmitting module is configured to implement the transmission function of the communication device 700, and the receiving module is configured to implement the receiving function of the communication device 700.

[0221] Optionally, the communication device 700 may further include a storage module (not shown in Figure 7) that stores a program or instruction. When the processing module 702 executes the program or instruction, the communication device 700 becomes capable of performing the functions of the network device in the manner shown in Figure 5.

[0222] It can be understood that the communication device 700 may be a terminal, a chip (system) or another component or element that can be placed in a terminal, or a device including a terminal. This is not limited to the present application.

[0223] Furthermore, for the technical effects of the communication device 700, please refer to the technical effects of the method shown in Figure 5. Further details will not be explained again in this specification.

[0224] Figure 8 is a diagram showing the structure of a communication device according to one embodiment of the present application. For example, the communication device may be a terminal, or a chip (system) or another component or element that can be placed in a terminal. As shown in Figure 8, the communication device 800 includes a processor 801. Optionally, the communication device 800 may further include a memory 802 and / or a transceiver 803. The processor 801 may be coupled to the memory 802 and the transceiver 803 and connected, for example, via a communication bus.

[0225] The following will provide a detailed explanation of each part of the communication device 800 with reference to Figure 8.

[0226] The processor 801 is the control center of the communication device 800 and may be a processor, or it may be a collective term for multiple processing elements. For example, the processor 801 may be one or more central processing units (CPUs), which may be application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), or it may be configured as one or more integrated circuits for implementing embodiments of the present application, such as one or more digital signal processors (DSPs) or one or more field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs).

[0227] Optionally, the processor 801 can perform various functions of the communication device 800 by executing software programs stored in memory 802 and retrieving data stored in memory 802, for example, by performing the method shown in Figure 5.

[0228] In one embodiment, during a particular implementation, the processor 801 may include one or more CPUs, for example, CPU 0 and CPU 1 shown in Figure 8.

[0229] In one embodiment, during a particular implementation, the communication device 800 may alternatively include multiple processors, such as processors 801 and 804 shown in Figure 8. Each of the processors may be a single-core processor (single-CPU) or a multi-core processor (multi-CPU). A processor as used herein may be one or more devices, circuits, and / or processing cores configured to process data (e.g., computer program instructions).

[0230] Memory 802 is configured to store a software program for executing the solution of this application, and processor 801 controls the execution of the software program. For specific implementations, please refer to the embodiments of the method described above. Further details are not described herein.

[0231] Optionally, memory 802 may be read-only memory (ROM) or another type of static storage device capable of storing static information and instructions, random access memory (RAM) or another type of dynamic storage device capable of storing information and instructions, or electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) or another compact disc storage device, optical disc storage device (including compact discs, laser discs, optical discs, digital multipurpose discs, Blu-ray discs, etc.), magnetic disk storage medium or another magnetic storage device, or any other medium accessible by a computer that can be used to carry or store program code expected in the form of instructions or data structures. However, it is not limited thereto. Memory 802 may be integrated with processor 801 or exist independently, and may be coupled to processor 801 via an interface circuit of communication device 800 (not shown in Figure 8). This is not particularly limited in the embodiments of this application.

[0232] The transceiver 803 is configured to communicate with another communication device. For example, if the communication device 800 is a terminal, the transceiver 803 may be configured to communicate with a network device or with another terminal device. In another example, if the communication device 800 is a network device, the transceiver 803 may be configured to communicate with a terminal or with another network device.

[0233] Optionally, the transceiver 803 may include a receiver and a transmitter (not shown separately in Figure 8). The receiver is configured to implement receiving functions, and the transmitter is configured to implement transmitting functions.

[0234] Optionally, the transceiver 803 may be integrated with the processor 801 or exist independently, and may be coupled to the processor 801 via an interface circuit of the communication device 800 (not shown in Figure 8). This is not particularly limited to the embodiments of this application.

[0235] It should be understood that the structure of the communication device 800 shown in Figure 8 does not constitute a limitation on communication devices. Actual communication devices may include more or fewer components, or combinations of some components, or different arrangements of components than those shown in the figure.

[0236] Furthermore, for the technical effects of the communication device 800, please refer to the technical effects of the method in the embodiment of the method described above. Details will not be described again in this specification.

[0237] It should be understood that the processor in the embodiments of this application may be a central processing unit (CPU), or the processor may be another general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), or another programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic device, discrete hardware component, etc. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor, or the processor may be any conventional processor, etc.

[0238] It can be understood that the memory in the embodiments of this application may be volatile memory or non-volatile memory, or may include both volatile and non-volatile memory. Non-volatile memory may be read-only memory (ROM), programmable read-only memory (PROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), or flash memory. Volatile memory may be random access memory (RAM) used as an external cache. Rather than providing a limited explanation, through examples, many forms of random access memory (RAM), such as static random access memory (static RAM, SRAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), synchronous dynamic random access memory (synchronous DRAM, SDRAM), double data rate synchronous dynamic random access memory (double data rate SDRAM, DDR SDRAM), enhanced synchronous dynamic random access memory (enhanced SDRAM, ESDRAM), synchlink dynamic random access memory (synchlink DRAM, SLDRAM), and direct rambus random access memory (direct rambus RAM, DR RAM), can be used.

[0239] All or part of the embodiments described above may be implemented using software, hardware (e.g., circuitry), firmware, or any combination thereof. When software is used to implement the embodiments, the embodiments described above may be implemented all or partly in the form of a computer program product. A computer program product includes one or more computer instructions or computer programs. When the computer instructions or computer programs are loaded onto a computer and executed, all or part of the procedures or functions according to the embodiments of this application are generated. The computer may be a general-purpose computer, a dedicated computer, a computer network, or another programmable device. Computer instructions may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another. For example, computer instructions may be transmitted from one website, computer, server, or data center to another website, computer, server, or data center by a wired (e.g., infrared, wireless, and microwave) method. The computer-readable storage medium may be any available medium accessible by a computer, or a data storage device such as a server or data center that integrates one or more available media. The usable media may be magnetic media (e.g., floppy disks, hard disks, or magnetic tapes), optical media (e.g., DVDs), or semiconductor media. The semiconductor media may be solid-state drives.

[0240] In this specification, the term "and / or" describes only the relationship between the relevant objects, and it should be understood that three relationships may exist. For example, A and / or B may represent the following three cases: that only A exists, that both A and B exist, and that only B exists, and A and B may be singular or plural. Furthermore, the letter " / " in this specification usually indicates an "or" relationship between the relevant objects, but may also indicate an "and / or" relationship. For further details, please refer to the context for understanding.

[0241] In this application, "at least one" means one or more, and "multiple" means two or more. "At least one of the following items (parts)" or similar expressions refer to any combination of these items, including a single item (part) or any combination of multiple items (parts). For example, at least one of a, b, or c may refer to a, b, c, ab, ac, bc, or abc, where a, b, and c may be singular or plural.

[0242] It should be understood that the sequence numbers of the processes described above do not imply execution sequences in the various embodiments of this application. The execution sequence of a process should be determined according to the function and internal logic of the process and should not be construed as any limitation to the implementation forms of the processes of the embodiments of this application.

[0243] Those skilled in the art will recognize, in combination with the examples described in the embodiments disclosed herein, that units and algorithmic steps may be implemented by electronic hardware or by a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether a function is performed by hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Those skilled in the art may use different methods to implement the functions described for each specific application, but the implementation should not be considered to exceed the scope of this application.

[0244] For the sake of convenient and concise explanation, it will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art that detailed operating processes of the above-described systems, apparatus, and units should be referred to by the corresponding processes in the embodiments of the methods described above. Further details are not described herein.

[0245] In some embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed systems, apparatus, and methods may be implemented in other ways. For example, the embodiments of the apparatus described are merely examples. For example, the division into units is merely a logical functional division, and other divisions may be possible in actual implementations. For example, multiple units or components may be coupled or integrated into another system, or some features may be ignored or not performed. In addition, the mutual coupling, direct coupling, or communication connection shown or described may be implemented through some interfaces. Indirect coupling or communication connection between apparatus or units may be implemented electronically, mechanically, or in other forms.

[0246] Units described as separate parts may or may not be physically separate, and parts shown as units may or may not be physical units, may be located in one place, or may be distributed across multiple network units. Some or all of the units may be selected based on the actual requirements for achieving the objectives of the solution of the embodiment.

[0247] In addition, the functional units in the embodiments of this application may be integrated into a single processing unit, each unit may exist physically independently, or two or more units may be integrated into a single unit.

[0248] When a function is implemented in the form of a software function unit and sold or used as an independent product, the function may be stored on a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solutions of this application, in essence, or in part with respect to the present art, or a part of the technical solutions, may be implemented in the form of a software product. The software product includes several instructions stored on a storage medium for instructing a computing device (which may be a personal computer, server, or network device) to perform all or part of the steps of the methods described in embodiments of this application. The storage mediums mentioned above include any medium capable of storing program code, such as a USB flash drive, a removable hard disk, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), a magnetic disk, or an optical disk.

[0249] The above description represents only a specific implementation of this application and does not limit the scope of protection. Any modifications or substitutions readily conceivable by a person skilled in the art within the scope of the technical scope disclosed herein shall fall within the scope of protection. Accordingly, the scope of protection of this application shall be subject to the scope of protection of the claims. [Explanation of symbols]

[0250] 700 Communication equipment 701 Transceiver Module 702 Processing Module 800 Communication equipment 801 Processor 802 memory 803 Transceiver 804 Processor

Claims

1. A cell determination method, wherein the method is A step of obtaining configuration information by a terminal, wherein the configuration information includes configuration information of a first cell set, the configuration information of the first cell set includes service time for at least two cells in the first cell set to provide services to a target object, and the first cell set is a set of cells that provide services to the target object. The terminal determines a first cell to be measured within the first cell set based on the configuration information of the first cell set. A cell determination method that includes this.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the service time during which the at least two cells in the first cell set provide service to the target object includes at least one of the service start time of the at least two cells in the first cell set or the service end time of the at least two cells in the first cell set.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the at least two cells in the first cell set include a first cell and a second cell whose service end times are adjacent, the first time at which the terminal starts measurement is after the service end time of the first cell, the first time is before the service end time of the second cell, and the first cell to be measured includes the second cell.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein the at least two cells in the first cell set further include a third cell whose service end time is adjacent to the service end time of the second cell, the service end time of the third cell being after the service end time of the second cell, and the first cell to be measured further includes the third cell.

5. The method according to claim 2, wherein the at least two cells in the first cell set include a first cell and a second cell whose service start times are adjacent, the first time at which the terminal starts measurement is after the service start time of the first cell, the first time is before the service start time of the second cell, and the first cell to be measured includes the first cell.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein the at least two cells in the first cell set further include a third cell whose service start time is adjacent to the service start time of the first cell, the service start time of the third cell being earlier than the service start time of the first cell, and the first cell to be measured further includes the third cell.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the first cell set is a set of cells that provide services to the target object in a time series.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein the first cell set is from different satellites and is a set of cells that provide service to the target object in a time series.

9. The configuration information further includes configuration information for a second cell set, the configuration information for the second cell set includes the service time for at least two cells in the second cell set, the at least two cells in the second cell set partially overlap with the at least two cells in the first cell set, and the method is The terminal determines a second cell to be measured within the second cell set based on the configuration information of the second cell set. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, further comprising:

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein the service time of the at least two cells in the second cell set includes at least one of the service start time of the at least two cells in the second cell set or the service end time of the at least two cells in the second cell set.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein the at least two cells in the second cell set include a fourth cell and a fifth cell whose service end times are adjacent, the first time at which the terminal starts measuring is after the service end time of the fourth cell, the first time is before the service end time of the fifth cell, and the second cell to be measured includes the fifth cell.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein the at least two cells in the second cell set further include a sixth cell whose end-of-service time is adjacent to the end-of-service time of the fifth cell, the end-of-service time of the sixth cell being after the end-of-service time of the fifth cell, and the second cell to be measured further includes the sixth cell.

13. The method according to claim 10, wherein the at least two cells in the second cell set include a fourth cell and a fifth cell whose service start times are adjacent, the first time at which the terminal starts measuring is after the service start time of the fourth cell, the first time is before the service start time of the fifth cell, and the second cell to be measured includes the fourth cell.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein the at least two cells in the second cell set further include a sixth cell whose service start time is adjacent to the service start time of the fourth cell, the service start time of the sixth cell being earlier than the service start time of the fourth cell, and the second cell to be measured further includes the sixth cell.

15. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 14, wherein the service time of the at least two cells is Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), or the service time of the at least two cells is a time offset from base UTC.

16. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 15, wherein the target object is one of a target area, a target ground station, a target base station, or a target terminal.

17. A cell determination method, wherein the method is A step of obtaining configuration information by a network device, wherein the configuration information includes configuration information of a first cell set, the configuration information of the first cell set includes service times in which at least two cells in the first cell set provide service to a target object, the first cell set is a set of cells that provide service to the target object, and the configuration information of the first cell set is used by a terminal to determine the cell to be measured in the first cell set. The steps include: transmitting the configuration information using the aforementioned network device; Methods that include...

18. The method according to claim 17, wherein the service time for the at least two cells in the first cell set to provide service to the target object includes at least one of the service start time of the at least two cells in the first cell set or the service end time of the at least two cells in the first cell set.

19. The method according to claim 17 or 18, wherein the first cell set is a set of cells that provide services to the target object in a time series.

20. The method according to any one of claims 17 to 19, wherein the first cell set is a set of cells that provide service to the target object in a time series, and is of different satellites.

21. The method according to any one of claims 17 to 20, wherein the configuration information further includes configuration information for a second cell set, the configuration information for the second cell set includes service times for at least two cells in the second cell set, the at least two cells in the second cell set partially overlap with the at least two cells in the first cell set, and the configuration information for the second cell set is used by the terminal to determine the cell to be measured in the second cell set.

22. The method according to claim 21, wherein the service time of the at least two cells in the second cell set includes at least one of the service start time of the at least two cells in the second cell set or the service end time of the at least two cells in the second cell set.

23. The method according to any one of claims 17 to 22, wherein the service time of the at least two cells is Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), or the service time of the at least two cells is a time offset from base UTC.

24. The method according to any one of claims 17 to 23, wherein the target object is one of a target area, a target ground station, a target base station, or a target terminal.

25. A communication device, wherein the device comprises a module configured to perform the method described in any one of claims 1 to 16.

26. A communication device, wherein the device comprises a module configured to perform the method described in any one of claims 17 to 24.

27. A communication device comprising a processor, the processor being coupled to a memory, and the processor being configured to execute a computer program stored in the memory so that the device performs the method according to any one of claims 1 to 24.

28. A communication device comprising a processor and memory, wherein the memory is configured to store computer instructions, and when the processor executes the computer instructions, the device is enabled to perform the method according to any one of claims 1 to 24.

29. A computer-readable storage medium, wherein the computer-readable storage medium includes a computer program or instructions, and when the computer program or instructions are executed on a computer, the computer is enabled to perform the method according to any one of claims 1 to 24.

30. A computer program product, the computer program product includes a computer program or instructions, and when the computer program or instructions are executed on a computer, the computer is enabled to perform the method according to any one of claims 1 to 24.

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